This past Saturday night was the long awaited My Kinda Party Tour stop in the swamps of Jersey which showcased two of Country Music’s new stars: Jason Aldean and Luke Bryan. The two artists, both from Georgia, probably never thought a few years ago that they would be able to fill an arena in Northern New Jersey, just across the Hudson River from New York City, but they did just that. In fact, www.countrymusicislove.com just reported that Saturday night’s show “set a new record for a Country concert with more than 19,000 fans, breaking Shania Twain’s previous record of 15,749 in 2003.”

The show started with a set from American Idol alum, Lauren Alaina. I was unable to see her set, but was treated to seeing her stage presence during her tour-mates sets. I walked in to the first of two sets by DeeJay Silver, a dj/remixer/producer who had the crowd entertained between acts.

DeeJay Silver cranked out remixed versions of everything from Eric Church to LMFAO to Garth Brooks to Flo Rida. I really enjoyed his craft because the songs he mashed up really worked well although the genre’s are so different. I look forward to hearing more from DeeJay Silver and I believe he is on to something with his mind for music mash-ups.

The lights went dim and rapper Flo Rida’s song “Good Feeling” played as the entire arena got on their feet. Upon the large projection screen hanging high above the stage, a short video showed a Farmer in Georgia discussing how vital rain is to his life and crops. This of course set up Luke Bryan’s mega-hit “Rain” which he emerged to from the back of the unique, but complicated stage set up.

Luke has recently emerged as major name in country music, but has been steadily building his name over the past five or so years. He played homage to all his hits off of his three albums thus far. After “Rain”, he sang “Country Man”, then went on to “Someone Else Calling You Baby”. Throughout his set he was extremely active, using all sides of the stage and interacting with the crowd.

The one thing that truly stood out to me was the screams of the crowd. I have been to well over 200 concerts and it is not often that the women in the crowd scream more than they sing. Justin Timberlake, Enrique Iglesias, and the other pop heartthrob singers get that treatment, but this was the first country artist I’ve seen get that reaction. Luke has become much more than a country artist, it was very clear. And he played that up, to the woman’s delight, especially on his latest single, “Drunk On You”, where he did half the song acoustically (shaking his body and dancing playfully throughout), then fired it up with the band.

He did not forget about the men in the crowd as he shouted “where are my deer hunters at? Where are my beer drinkers at?” And followed it up with the bombastic “Drinking Beer and Wasting Bullets”. He interacted with the crowd and really seemed gracious with the streams and cheers. He stated how much it meant for him “for coming up here and playing across the river from the greatest city in the world”. Much of the crowd, admist the screams, yelled out a similar ode to Bruce Springsteen as they would call out “Luuuuuuuuuke” between songs.

He showcased his piano skills during his first ever #1 hit, “Do I” and a version of Adele’s “Someone Like You”. He cranked out the inner rocker as he mashed up his first single “All My Friends” with Metallica’s “Enter The Sandman”. He had the crowd in the palm of his hand as he had everyone singing to his latest number #1 “I Don’t Want This Night To End”. But there was not a higher bit of energy the entire night than on his final song, an auto-tuned remix of “Country Girl (Shake It For Me)”.

Not only did he shake it for the crowd, but he brought out Lauren Alaina, who did her own country girl dance (and poked fun at the way Luke dances). And he brought two males from the crowd to attempt their own dances, which did not work out that well – and Luke really had a good time poking fun at their lack of skills.

Overall he put forth one of the more spirited opening acts that I have witnessed. This man is very close to selling out arenas with his name at the top of the bill.

DeeJay Silver came back out to keep the crowd on their feet and energized for the headlining act. He did a great job at doing just that as portions of the crowd were fist pumping and “jersey turnpiking” to the club hits. By the time Jason Aldean took to the stage, the Izod Center was transformed into a full on party atmosphere. Wasting no time, Jason smashed right into “Johnny Cash”.

Jason, for some reason, decided to slow things down a bit for the next three songs: “Big Green Tractor”, “Amarillo Sky” and “The Truth”. Despite half the crowd losing a bit of their party tenacity, Aldean’s vocals proved to be enough to carry through. He has such a brilliant live voice in which he can really showcase in all notes, whether it be high or low. And in those three slower songs, I was mesmerized by the pipes he contains.

Jason then told everyone to get back on their feet and “get as crazy as you want to Jersey!” – following it up with the vigorous “Crazy Town”. The stage set up contained several moving projection screens suspended by wires on large cranes. It also contained several areas on both sides where Jason could perch himself up and show himself to his fans. There was no large screen behind the stage, as has been the custom for most artists. Instead, he had a 360 degree stage where fans could sit behind the stage as well. It was a cool setup and has allowed for Jason’s streak of record breaking crowds.

After singing his latest single “Fly Over States”, he told the crowd he is finishing up a new album and wants to release it before the end of the year. He then, abruptly, jumped off the front of the stage and ran through the crowd to the back area, where DeeJay Silver had been set up. Then Luke Bryan jumped up on the platform with him.

The crowd went nuts as the two stars ran through a fun acoustic set. Jason asked Luke why the crowd was boo’ing him and he responded that he wasn’t being boo’ed, but getting his “Springsteen moment”. He then sang a snippet of “Glory Days” by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band.

The two friends discussed life in Georgia, their new found fame, drank some beers together and sang some classics like George Strait’s “Amarillo By Morning” and Tracy Lawrence’s “Time Marches On”. Jason then explained how he was upset Luke was not including his favorite song by him in his set anymore. They then made up for that omission by singing “We Rode In Trucks” together. It was a special alternative set and I always love to see artists collaborating live. What made it that much more special is how the two Georgia boys seem to really admire each other.

Jason returned to the main stage and pumped out a few more vocal delights, “Tattoos On This Town”, “Relentless” and the mega-hit “Don’t You Wanna Stay”, which originally features Kelly Clarkson. Instead, he brought out a dressed up Lauren Alaina who did a great job with the very difficult vocals.

Lauren really impressed me as she moved about the stage with the confidence of a veteran and Jason absolutely nailed his vocals giving everyone goosebumps.

Jason did not slow things down any longer as he pumped out “My Kinda Party” and “She’s Country” as the final two songs of his set. Drummer Rich Redmond displayed his often humorous yet very effective drumming skills throughout the two energetic anthems. Jason left the stage for a short few minutes and returned for his encore.

As impressive as Jason’s live vocals are, his rapping skills are equally impressive. He performed a perfect version of his rapid fire hip hop/country song “Dirt Road Anthem”. Microphone in hand, Jason moved about the stage to the song with all the swagger and bravado of any rapper just over to the river in NYC. The crowd helped Jason recover as they belted out the chorus to the catchy song.

He finished things off with his first ever single, the John Rich written “Hicktown”. He included all the extra verses and gave the crowd everything he had left. Overall, Aldean brought a hell of a party to NJ, full of rocking country anthems, love songs, great vocals, a unique stage set up, and a cast of tour-mates that had something for every fan. I look forward to seeing this same tour again and would highly suggest you don’t miss out on this party.